764 



Land Drainage. 



[Nov., 



LAND DRAINAGE. 



The Improvement of Watercourses.— The Land Drainage 

 (Ouse) Provisional Order Act, which has now become law, is 

 a measure of great importance, and is one of the first concrete 

 results of the passing of the Land Drainage Act in 1918. 



In all low-lying districts the prosperity of agricultura 

 depends essentially upon the maintenance of the main water- 

 courses in such a condition that floods can be controlled to 

 the greatest possible extent, and flood-water prevented from 

 lying on the land long enough to impair its fertility. 



The present condition of most of the great rivers in England 

 is lamentable, and it has arisen in almost every case from the 

 absence of a Central Authority possessing the power to control 

 the whole river and to hold a fair balance between conflicting 

 interests. The Ministry has long felt that the Great Ouse is 

 a case where the need for such an Authority is the most 

 urgent. It was clear from the beginning that, owing to the 

 number of important local Drainage Authorities — some of 

 them upwards of 300 years old — which already existed to 

 look after local interests, and to the number of divergent 

 interests which had to be safeguarded, the establishment of ^ 

 ■Central Authority for the Great Ouse would present very 

 serious difficulties. At the same time, it was thought that if 

 the soundness of the Ministry's policy could be established 

 in such a case, an example would be set which could hardly 

 fail to be followed on the other great river systems throughout 

 the country. 



The Ouse Provisional Order was settled by the Ministry 

 with the loyal help of the majority of the drainage and other 

 Local Authorities concerned, but was very strenuously oppose<l 

 by a small minority . of Authorities and individuals. This 

 opposition led to a debate in the House of Commons, and to 

 a most exhaustive discussion before Committees of both 

 Houses of Parliament. The result has been that the policy 

 of placing the whole of each river system under a Central 

 Authority, responsible for all sections of the main channels, has 

 been completely vindicated. The principles embodied in the 

 Ouse Provisional Order were upheld in their entirety by Parlia- 

 ment,, and the alterations made by the Committees were in, 

 matters of detail only, and were all made, with one exception, 

 either at the instance or with the consent of the Ministry. 



Besides the main principle of policy already referred to, certain 



